ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment
CONSTRUCTION OF OLD AGE HOMES FOR SENIOR CITIZENS
The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment is implementing ‘Integrated Programme for Senior Citizens’ , a component of ‘Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana’ , under which grant-in-aid is provided to NGOs/Voluntary Organizations  for running and maintenance of Senior Citizens Homes , Continuous Care Homes, etc. Facilities like shelter, nutrition, medicare and recreation are provided free of cost to the indigent senior citizens who live in such homes. The Department does not provide grant-in-aid for construction of Senior Citizen Homes. To add new projects under IPSrC, the Department invites applications for new projects in gap districts, as per the survey details received from respective State Govts/UT Admins. On the basis of recommendations of the respective State Govts/UT Admins, and requisite documents received, new projects are added under the Scheme.
Presently, total 08 Senior Citizen Homes are running under the Scheme of IPSrC in Gujarat State.
This information was given by Minister of state for Social Justice and Empowerment Sushri Pratima Bhoumik in the Rajya Sabha in a written reply today.
Prime Minister's Office
Varanasi nominated as the first-ever SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital at the 2022 SCO Summit
1. The city of Varanasi has been nominated as the first-ever SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital during the period 2022-2023 at the 22nd Meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization  Council of Heads of State in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had participated in the Summit.
2. The nomination of Varanasi as the first ever SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital will promote tourism, cultural and humanitarian exchanges between India and the SCO member Countries. It also underlines India’s ancient civilizational links with Member States of SCO, especially the Central Asian Republics.
3. Under the framework of this major cultural outreach program, a number of events will be hosted in Varanasi during 2022-23, for which guests will be invited to participate from SCO Member States. These events are expected to attract Indologists, scholars, authors, musicians and artists, photo journalists, travel bloggers and other invited guests.
4. The regulations for nomination of the SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital were adopted at the Dushanbe SCO Summit in 2021 with an objective of promoting cooperation between the SCO Member States in the field of culture and tourism.
Samarkand
September 16, 2022
Special Service and Features
Union government is implementing many schemes to make education, employment and economic development available for all: Union MoS Shri Ramdas Athawale
Union Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment Shri Ramdas Athawale today said the Central government is implementing many schemes to make education, employment and economic development available for all.
Speaking to the media after he launched '14567' helpline for elders and '181' awareness helpline for women at an event in Vellore, Shri Athwale said over 1.13 crore Jan Dhan bank accounts have been opened in Tamil Nadu so far.
More than 3.60 crore persons in Tamil Nadu have availed benefits under Mudra scheme since 2015, he said and added that 29 lakh in the State have received LPG connections so far since 2016.
Under the Prime Minister's Housing Scheme, 5.60 lakh persons have received houses in rural areas and 4.42 lakh persons in urban areas since 2015, Shri Athwale said.
Talking about the Prime Minister's Jan Arogya scheme, he said 39 lakh persons in Tamil Nadu have received the benefits so far at a cost of Rs 4.87 thousand crores.
The Minister of State said that the Centre is promoting inter-caste marriages and 1.75 lakh such weddings are happening in a year. The Union government is giving Rs 2.5 lakh financial assistance to inter-caste couples.
Stating that the Tamil Nadu government was supporting the minorities, Shri Athwale said it should give 5 acre land to the oppressed sections so that they could attain economic development.
Vellore District Collector Shri Kumaravel Pandian, Press Information Bureau, Chennai, Director Shri Gurubabu Balaraman and other officials were present during the event.
Shri Athwale also visited the Vellore Sepoy Mutiny pillar and paid tributes. Vellore Sepoy Mutiny is hailed as the event that sowed the seeds for the country's independence.
PIB Headquarters
TALK ON WATER CONSERVATION AT NISA
As part of JAL SHAKTI ABHIYAN well known water conservationist referred to as Mr Suresh, as 'Solar’ Suresh visited the CISF campus and spoke to the staff of National Industrial Security Academy about techniques of water conservation and green initiatives.
He advised the staff of NISA about the need to conserve water and make the campus greener by optimally utilising natural resources. The 240 acre campus would benefit by adopting water conservation techniques, he said.
An alumni of IIT-Chennai and IIM-Ahmedabad, Sri Shuresh is popular for his home, in Chennai designed to be self sufficient by using solar panels, rain water harvesting, biogas, terrace gardens and an Air-o-water machine, which makes drinking water out of air.
Ministry of Defence
LIST OF HONORARY RANKS AWARDED ON THE OCCASION OF INDEPENDENCE DAY 2023
1. List of Honorary Commission  awarded on the occasion of Independence Day 2023 are enclosed as mentioned below :-
 Active List Honorary Ranks.
 Honorary Ranks after retirement.
 Honorary Nb Sub Ranks after retirement.
SUMMARY
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Ser No
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|
Rank/Award
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Active List
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After Retirement
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|
1.
|
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Hony Capt
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445
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1388
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|
2.
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Hony Lt
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1811
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393
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3.
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Hony Sub Maj
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|
-
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|
3584
|
|
4.
|
|
Hony Sub
|
|
-
|
|
839
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|
5.
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|
Hony Nb Sub
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|
-
|
|
4012
____________________________________________________________
SC/RSR/GKA
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Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
E-commerce portal of MSME to enable all businesses to enhance global reach
National Small Industries Corporation, a PSU under the Ministry of MSME has a B2B MSME Global Mart Portal and efforts have been made to further strengthen activities under it. The salient features of the portal include online registration, web store management, multiple payment options, customer support through Call Centre and enhanced security features.
Khadi and Village Industries Commission , a statutory body under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises has ekhadiindia.com for B2C outreach, which enables all businesses to have a global reach with Interactivity, Immediacy and Ease of Adaptation.
The revenue generation from the portal depends on membership of the portal.
This information was given by Minister for Micro. Small and Medium Enterprises Shri Narayan Rane in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment
Divya Kala Shakti: Divyang Youth to Showcase their Talents in Mumbai
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is organisng the First-Ever Western Regional Cultural Event for the Differently Abled
Mumbai, 26 April 2022
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment  is organizing the first-ever western regional cultural event - ‘Divya Kala Shakti: Witnessing the Abilities in Disabilities’ at Nehru Centre Auditorium, Worli, Mumbai at 6 PM tomorrow, 27th April, 2022. This is being organized in the light of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav Celebrations taking place across the country. Governor of Maharashtra Shri. Bhagat Singh Koshyari will inaugurate the event in the presence of Cabinet Minister, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Dr. Virendra Kumar.
Divya Kala Shakti is a cultural event that provides a wider and unique platform to showcase the potentials of persons who are differently abled in the field of performing art, music, dance, acrobatics etc. This event which is a unique cultural talent display of Divyangjan, is expected to be for more than one and half hours in duration and will include for the first time, yoga and acrobatics performance. Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for Speech and Hearing Disabilities , Mumbai in collaboration with the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities , is hosting the event in Mumbai.
More than 150 children and youth with different disabilities from the states in the western region such as Maharashtra, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Daman & Diu. These children and youth will demonstrate their talents and perform, puppetry, dance, music, etc. in classical, folk and modern style. All the participants will be awarded a certificate for recognition and awards for winning the competitions at the regional level.
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment , has organized this event at the national level and in other regions of the country in the past four years.PIB Mumbai | DL/DR
Follow us on social media: @PIBMumbai /PIBMumbai /pibmumbai pibmumbai[at]gmail[dot]com
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Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
CIPET gets accreditation by NABL for testing and Certification of PPE kit
Shri Gowda congratulates CIPET on this achievement
Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology  an apex level premium institute under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Deptt of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, has been accredited by National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories  for Testing & Certification of PPE Kit.
PPE kit includes Gloves, Coverall, Face Shield & Goggles, and Triple Layer Medical masks etc in line with International Standards. This is another achievement of CIPET in the fight against COVID- 19 Pandemic and a step forward towards ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.
CIPET : IPT Centre Bhubaneshwar, after developing facility of testing PPE kit had submitted an application to NABL for accreditation. After an online audit of its testing facility NABL granted accreditation to CIPET- Centre Bhubaneshwar. Some other CIPET centers have also applied for accreditation which is under process.
Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers Shri DV Sadananda Gowda has Congratulated CIPET –Bhubaneshwar for this achievement, called for keeping up the momentum for pioneering works to serve the people of the country and helping MSME to focus on Make in India.
CIPET has been taking up the R&D initiatives in the areas of Health Care as per WHO/ ISO guidelines. CIPET has also expanded its capacity to test foodgrain and fertilizer packaging in order to support the essential services during Covid pandemic.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
All India 2017-18  of Area & Production of Horticulture Crops
The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare has released the 2017-18 of Area and Production of Horticulture Crops. These estimates are based on the information received from different State/UTs in the country.
Following table summarises the All-India Final Estimates: 2016-17 and 2017- 18 :
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Total Horticulture
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2016-17
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2017-18
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% change of 2017-18w.r.t.
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|
|
|
|
|
Third Adv.
Est.
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|
2016-17
|
|
Area 
|
|
24851
|
|
25662
|
|
3.26
|
|
Production

|
|
300643
|
|
306818
|
|
2.05
Highlights:-
The Third Advance Estimates for horticulture crops, have been prepared on the basis of information received from State Departments of Horticulture/Agriculture and various agencies like Directorate of Arecanut & Spices Development , Directorate of Cashew & Cocoa Development  and National Bee Board . The main highlights of horticulture scenario during 2017- 18 are as under.
- The total horticulture production of the country is estimated to be 306.8 Million Tonnes during 2017-18 which is 2.05% higher than the previous year and 8.5% higher than the past 5 years’ average production.
- Production of fruits is estimated to be about 97 million tonnes which is 4.5% higher than previous year.
- Production of vegetables is estimated to be about 179.7 million tonnes which is about 1.0% higher than the previous year.
- Onion production in the current year is likely to be around 220 lakh Tonnes as against 224 lakh Tonnes in 2016-17, which is 6%, higher than the last 5 years’ average.
- Potato production is estimated at 485 lakh Tonnes as against 486 lakh Tonnes in 2016-17 which is about 5% higher than the last 5 years’ average production.
- Tomato production in the current year is likely to be around 194 lakh Tonnes as against 207 lakh Tonnes in 2016-17 which is about 3% higher than the last 5 years’ average production.
Ministry of Railways
Indian Railways organizes two-day Chintan Shivir at New Delhi
Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw presided over the sessions
Senior officers from Railway Board, Zonal Railways and PSUs attended the event
Objective of the Chintan Shivir centered on preparing an action plan to implement Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s “Vision 2047”
Ministry of Railways organized a two days long Chintan Shivir on 1stand 2nd June, 2023 at Manekshaw Centre, New Delhi. Minister of Railways Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw presided over the sessions today. Ministers of State for Railways, Shri Raosaheb Patil Danve and Smt Darshana Jardosh also graced the event. Chairman & CEO, Railway Board Shri Anil Kumar Lahoti, Members of Railway Board and other officers, including youngsters, from Railway Board and all Zonal Railways participated in the event. Approximately 400 participants from Zonal Railways, PUs, PSUs, CTIs, RDSO etc took part in this mega event.
The objective of the Chintan Shivir was to brainstorm on finding new ways and methods and adopt innovative ideas to achieve commissioning of more track/year , higher loading per Day, achieving 160 Kmph on 50% routes, and attaining Zero Consequential Accidents and reduction in CRO & MRO by 90%.
Speaking on the occasion Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Railways emphasized on Rail Safety, and adoption of newer technologies. Also he urged officers to ponder over increasing train speed to 160 kmph for 30,000 Rkm. He also stressed upon Railways' role in Indian Economic growth.
Shri Vaishnaw urged officers to devise method to cater to 1100 Crores passenger annually and how congestion can be dealt. He also urged officers to adopt new technology and adopt the lessons learnt from ongoing Bullet Train project. He added that Vande Metro design has been finalised. The Minister said that action points from the deliberations should be culled out and action will be taken on them in time bound manner.
Four to Five teams headed by General Managers of different zonal Railways gave their presentations and new ideas on each topic. Each team comprised of members from PUs, PSUs, RDSO & CTIs also. Nominated Board Member/DG finalized topic-wise final presentation-road map for implementation. Four final presentations were held in Zorawar Auditorium of Manekshaw Centre during the last session.
The objective of the Chintan Shivir was to review the work of the Ministry of Railways and evolve an action plan to implement Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s “Vision 2047”. Railways has been working with ethos of 'Pai Pai Se Gareeb Ki Bhalai' and is determined to give the best services with utmost safety, and security at most affordable cost for every citizen of the country. The two-day Chintan Shivir event witnessed deliberation on various issues and boosting Railway’s pace further in making New India.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
National AIDS Control Organization  releases HIV Estimations 2017
The National AIDS Control Organisation  released the report HIV Estimations 2017 at a function, here today. The HIV Estimations 2017 is the 14th round in the series of HIV Estimations under National AIDS Control Programme . NACO undertakes HIV estimations biennially in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research  - National Institute of Medical Statistics . The first round of HIV estimation in India was done in 1998, while the last round was done in 2015.
The report highlights the significant achievement of National AIDS response on prevention as well as on treatment front but has also indicated that there is no place for complacency as country move forward on ambitious goal of attaining the ‘End of AIDS’ by 2030. As per the report, in 2017, India had around 21.40 lakh people living with HIV  with adult prevalence of 0.22%. Around 87.58 thousand new HIV infections and 69.11 thousand AIDS related deaths happened in 2017 while around 22,675 mothers needed Antiretroviral Therapy  for prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV. HIV Estimations 2017 corroborate the previous rounds in terms of characteristic of the HIV epidemic in India i.e. national prevalence and incidence remains low, but the epidemic is high in some geographical regions and population group. The report has noted that the rate of decline in annual new HIV infections has been relatively slower in recent years.
The report concludes that, overall, the impact of the programme has been significant with more than 80% decline in estimated new infection from peak of epidemic in 1995. Similarly, estimated AIDS related death declined by 71% since its peak in 2005. As per UNAIDS 2018 report, the global average for decline in new infections and AIDS related deaths from peak has been 47% and 51% respectively.
The objective of HIV Estimations is to provide updated information on the status of HIV epidemic in India at national and State/UT level. Estimations of adult HIV prevalence, annual new infections , AIDS-related mortality and prevention of mother-to-child transmission  needs are produced as outcomes of HIV estimations. The modelled estimates are needed because there is no direct reliable way of measuring these core indicators which are used to track the epidemic and monitor and evaluate the response in countries around the world.
Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
75987138.23 MT tentative total allocation under PMGKAY 
Total migrants covered per month are 2,74,27,887 under Atma Nirbhar Bharat Package
The Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ms. Ashwini Kumar Choubey in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today informed that during Covid, additional foodgrains  @ 5 kg per person per month have been provided, free of cost to all the beneficiaries covered under National Food Security Act  under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana  for the period April-November, 2020 and May, 2021 to March, 2022. State-wise details of foodgrains allocated to States/UTs, under PMGKAY scheme, are placed at Annexure-I.
Further, under Atma Nirbhar Bharat Package , this Department has made allocation of about total 8 LMT of additional food-grain covering all the States/UTs for migrants/stranded migrants, who are neither covered under National Food Security Act  nor State Scheme PDS Cards, @ 5 kg per person per month free of cost for a period of two months . The State-wise details of distribution are placed at Annexure-II.
Under PMGKAY-I i.e. April to June, 2020, pulses were distributed @ 1 kg per household per month, free of cost, to 19.4 crore beneficiary Households as per the National Food Security Act, 2013 . Under PMGKAY-II, i.e. July to November, 2020, 1 kg whole Chana was provided free of cost to each family per month to beneficiaries already identified under the NFSA. The State-wise details of allocation, lifting and distribution of pulses/whole Chana under PMGKAY-I & II is at Annexure-III  and III .
Further, during lockdown to contain Covid-19 Pandemic in 2020, Chana stocks were allocated for distribution of whole chana @1kg per household per month, free of cost, during May and June, 2020 to migrants who were not covered under NFSA, 2013 or were without ration card in the State/UT in which they were stranded. State-wise details of allocation, receiving, distribution and Number of beneficiary household are placed at Annexure-IV.
For Foodgrains , the total financial implication is about Rs. 2.75 lakh Crores.
For Foodgrains, under the PMGKAY scheme i.e April-November, 2020 and May, 2021 to March, 2022 is estimated to be about Rs. 2.60 lakh Crores. In addition to PMGKAY, under Atma Nirbhar Bharat , financial implication of upto maximum of Rs. 3109.52 crore were also provided.
Further, for pulses and chana, a total of Rs. 5140.00 Crore under PMGKAY-I , a total of Rs. 6999.24 Crore under PMGKAY-II  and a total of Rs. 280.00 Crore under Atma Nirbhar Bharat  had been allocated.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
Shri Gadkari says highways can be used for laying optic fibre, oil and gas pipelines
The Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Shri Nitin Gadkari has said that Information Technology holds the key to providing transparent and effective governance in the country. Shri Gadkari was speaking at INFOCOM 2017 organized by ABP Group and Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises in New Delhi today.
Commending the role played by Indian engineers and software experts worldwide Shri Gadkari said that if we wish to build and maintain a competitive edge over the world, we need to leverage technology to get the maximum returns from our assets. He said the Road Transport & Highways Ministry has around 2 lakh kilometres of highways, and he has offered the use of this entire stretch for laying optic fibre and oil and gas pipes. This, he said, could earn the Ministry some revenue that can be further utilized for constructing and maintaining roads.
Speaking about the road transport sector Shri Gadkari said that very soon the issue of driving licences will be entirely computerised . The fitness of a person for issue driving licence will be decided through a computer programme with no human interference. This will greatly enhance safety on roads by ensuring that licences are issued only to deserving drivers.
Shri Gadkari further said that E-tolling rolled out by his Ministry last year has helped cut down the traffic congestion at toll plazas on the National Highways. Trucks and other vehicles bearing FASTags are not required to stop at the toll gates, as the toll gets paid electronically through these RFID tags. The minister said efforts are being made to get more and more vehicles to use FASTags. Soon these will be available with vehicle dealers and new vehicles will come with the tags already attached. Besides easing congestion, e-tolling will also help reduce pollution and prevent unnecessary wastage of fuel – both corollaries of the long wait at toll plazas.
Telecom Secretary Ms Aruna Sundararajan also spoke on the occasion.
Ministry of Defence
Warm reception for Victory Flame at Raj Bhawan
A warm reception given to the Victory Flame  at Raj Bhawan. Shri. Arif Mohamed Khan, Hon’ble Governor of Kerala received the flame from Brigadier Kartik Seshadri, Station Commander, Pangode Military Station to commemorate the victory of Golden Jubilee Celebration of 1971 War. The senior officials from Pangode Military Station and Raj Bhawan attended the function.
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
No shortage of Vaccine Doses in Rajasthan
Centre closely Monitoring Vaccine Supply in all States/UTs
There have been some news reports suggesting impending shortage of COVID19 Vaccine doses in Rajasthan.
The factual position is that there is no shortage of COVID19 vaccine with the State at present. Rajasthan has been supplied 37.61 lakh doses and has consumed only 24.28 lakh doses till yesterday night.
The Central government is regularly monitoring availability of vaccine supply in all States and UTs, and providing the doses as per their requirement and consumption pattern.